


Good Night You, Good Night Moon

by hyuckshot



Series: A Room for Four [2]
Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Donghyuck is having a breakdown, M/M, Single Parent Donghyuck, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Twins
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-26
Updated: 2020-01-26
Packaged: 2021-02-27 05:02:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,676
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22411444
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hyuckshot/pseuds/hyuckshot
Summary: Donghyuck wants to be home with his mom, he wants to be a normal college student and stress over his thesis, his work load and his courses but the twins are making it hard for him. He needs his mom and maybe a little bit of Mark too.
Relationships: Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Mark Lee
Series: A Room for Four [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1604320
Comments: 21
Kudos: 399





	Good Night You, Good Night Moon

**Author's Note:**

> HELLO!!! again this isn’t betaed i’m deeply sorry, but I worked on this for weeks and I really wanted to post it up before i stress over my work load this week so here it is.

There are so many things to think about during hell week, a.k.a the following: reports; quizzes; thesis; finals; performance tasks; rent; sleep and so many other things that university just throws at you while perfectly turning a blind eye on how you’re literally human and cannot do everything all at once. Atop of that, if you’re Lee Donghyuck, you have an addition. Double the addition actually. You have twins to take care of, actual twins as your kids when you’re a single dad in college. He picks up the twins, one on each arm, manhandling them like they were sacks of rice. They had the right to play around and be left alone because they were three year olds after all, but this behavior is not a behavior to use when their dad is suffering from hell week. He sets them on the crib despite being old enough to be able to crush the crib if they jump too much. What’s important is the thing is high enough for them not to escape. Plus, Donghyuck hasn’t thrown the crib because it’s a reminder that he was able to raise the kids and they have actually outgrown what they used to have as a bed before.

“Appa, unfair!” Dowon complains, stomping her feet against the thin wood supporting the little crib and shaking the bars, “Appa!” she whines even further.

He turns around and gives her a stern look, “Appa is losing his mind studying because he has exams starting tomorrow, he has a night shift in the cafe later and you guys are being noisy. My head is hurting and I’m having such a hard time! Who do you think is unfair now?” 

Donghyuck stops in his tracks and is wide eyed once he’s taken a breath. He realizes just how he raised his voice at his kids. Raised his voice. At his kids. Three year olds. Literal babies. Three year old small babies. His babies. He sees Dowon’s lips quiver first, before fresh hot tears fall down her face, along with snot after. Then next he hears Dongwoo’s cries as well. It’s a mess, it’s literally a mess. Two kids wailing right in front of him when he has to study and now he just wants to take his frustrations out and maybe pass out. It’s too much to handle. And so he cries. How great.

He turns on his heels and leaves the kids crying on their own, the noise being already too much for his ears and his hurting head which was hurting more now that he’s already started crying. He slumps on the worn out couch and hugs his knees to his chest, shoving his head down and bawling his eyes out. This isn’t good parenting at all. None of this is what a single dad is supposed to do when his kids are crying. He’s doing such a horrible job, like, he shouldn’t even be sulking like this but alas! Here he is, Lee Donghyuck.

Suddenly everything was just too much. Maybe it’s because of the stress and maybe it’s because of his bottled up fatigue and emotions. But he just cries. He still cries when he picks up his phone and dials the first number that comes into his mind. He cries while the phone rings and he cries much more when it picks up almost immediately on the second ring. 

“Mom...?” he whispers, trying his best to not let his voice waver but who was he kidding, it’s his mom. She’d always find out. It’s typical for his mom to clown him, maybe if he was crying about a boy who isn’t worth it but if he tells her he’s having a hard time. He knew she’s gonna want him to go home.

“Hyuckie? How are you— Do you have the flu? Baby, oh no, are you crying?” he hears the panic in her voice before she lets out a heavy breath, and he knows. He knows she’s pulled her composure just like that. He’s always wanted to be like her.

“Mom...” he replies again, seemingly forgetting what to say and how to talk, “I wanna go home.” 

“Shhh, Hyuckie, it’s okay,” she soothes calmly, “Are those the twins crying as well? Did something happen?” 

“I... Mom- I...” he sobs, finding it hard to find his voice and the strength to say it to his mom, “I raised my voice at them and I... Mom, I’m sorry I didn’t mean to... I was juststressing I... Their faces, mom, they’re scared I think I’m scared too—“

He feels the smile in her voice rather than hearing it through the line. His mom’s voice gives him so much strength, inspiration and so much warmth that he failed to realize his fears have stopped producing more waves and just let them dry by themselves, “Hyuckie, it’s okay, baby. It’s normal, we’re people. We get sick and we get frustrated, it’s what makes us human. Nobody’s perfect, sweetie, it’s overused but it’s true.”

“But you’re perfect,” he blurts out, “to me, to dad, to the younger ones.”

“I’m not. You know that,” his mom says with a stern voice before becoming the sweet and pitched one he’s used to again, “I’m perfect to you, to dad and to the younger ones because you make me to be one. Nobody’s perfect unless you make them to be.” 

“But you always have everything under control!” Donghyuck thinks it’s ridiculous how he was just starting to be a baby and whine about everything, but he thinks again, this is his mom. He can say anything.

“Give the twins a few more years and they’ll be able to tell you the same and especially, when you find your other half.” 

“What even does that mean,” he sighs, but his mom dismisses him, “promise I’ll visit you soon, mom, I love you. I’ll get the kids now.”

“I love you too, Hyuck, go be the good dad you are now.” 

He hangs up and retreats back into the twins’ room. They’ve stopped wailing and are now only sniffing their tears away as they sat in the crib. He’s surprised they haven’t attempted to get down. They stared at him for a couple of seconds before he sees tears run down their eyes again, it pains him to see how much they’ve cried to the point that their eyes were swollen and their faces were flushed.

Donghyuck picks them up and lets them stand in front of him on the carpeted floor. Once they’ve settled down and found their balance, both Dowon and Dongwoo immediately scramble with their tiny feet to run up and hug Donghyuck on each leg. He feels them move their heads and he just knows he’s gonna have a hard time doing the laundry, they were shoving their faces on his pajamas and surely, their snot was all over his pants.

He grabs a clean towel from their drawer before crouching down to collect them in his arms. The kids oblige and stay quiet as their dad cleans up their faces and rid them of snot and tear tracks. They only speak up once Donghyuck throws the towel away down the nearest laundry basket in the room.

“Appa, sorry,” Dowon mumbles while Dongwoo struggles with a quiet, “Pa-Appa Appa? sorry.” 

Donghyuck can’t help giving them a gentle smile before pulling them both in for a hug and kissing their cheeks, “I forgive you. Appa has to study now, so you two can play here and keep quiet, is that okay?”

They nod in response and Donghyuck feels like he’s achieved something big. He makes sure to kiss their heads one last time before heading out to his own room where his reviewers and books scatter against his table and some piled up on the floor. He dreaded the sight, to be honest, he really did. 

“You’re not 30, you’re a college student, Donghyuck.” he says out loud but only for him to hear. Shoulders slumping and eyelids heavy, he sits cross legged on the floor and takes one of his handouts in an attempt to memorize and understand everything by heart. Around an hour and twenty minutes in, his eyes are already dozing off. He quickly shakes himself up and stands to wake himself. One look at the clock, telling him of the time, made him realize that it was time to check on the kids. He peeps through the small opening of the door to see that the kids were still on the floor playing amongst themselves. Knocking on the door, he lets himself in, “Hi babies, you hungry?” 

Dowon looks up at him first, Dongwoo seemingly to busy with connecting his lego pieces together, “Not yet.” she says politely.

“Okay, I’m going to run you both a bath then you can come with me to the cafe after,” he says, ruffling their hair and taking his leave, “Appa, has his shift.” 

Not long after he’s finished washing the soap off of their skin and shampoo out of their hair, he finds himself zoning out and smiling at the twins seated comfortably on the now clear water on the tub Donghyuck just filled up for the second time. The first one having the bubble bath they loved so much. No one has to tell the kids he loved it too, and that maybe just maybe it relieves him from stress with a warm bathe sometimes. Dowon was holding a pink rubber duck she apparently named Duckie and Dongwoo was drowning his squishy submarine. Of course, upon finding out that her dad was nicknamed Duckie, Dowon just had to call her toy that name.

“Come on out now, you’ll get wrinkles if you stay in the water too long,” both giggle and look at their little hands before standing up and extending their arms towards Donghyuck. Dowon and Dongwoo make grabby hands, competing whether who Donghyuck would pick up first. In the end he holds their hands at the same time while guiding them out of the tub, instead of carrying them one by one. It was a huge step but they’ll get a hang of it soon. 

Once Donghyuck has patter their heads with a towel and wrapped towels around their bodies, they scurry off to their bedroom where they wait for Donghyuck while he cleans up their mess. Again, when Donghyuck returns, they have already picked their clothes and placed them messily on the bed. He searches for the blower and sets the two in front of him with their backs facing him. Dongwoo shivers from the blow of air and Donghyuck can’t help letting out a low chuckle. He soon dries off their hair before Dowon gets up to fetch some of her clips and ponytails. Twenty minutes and a few more later, Donghyuck finds himself sitting on the fluffy bed, hair a mess with different clips designing his hair, Dongwoo laughing his ass off and Dowon clapping her hands as she inspects the masterpiece which is her dad’s head. 

“Come with appa to the cafe again okay? Please behave this time and tell me if you’re going to go to the bathroom,” he tells them, clasping his hands in a pleasing pose in front of his face, “Please? Can you do that for appa?”

They nod in agreement with happy smiles on their faces. 

Donghyuck decides to ride the bus to the cafe since he felt like he’s used up enough energy today and might be worn out if he walks some more. The whole ride was peaceful, the twins occupying seats in front of him as he stands and watch over their small figure, looking up at him. He makes faces at them every now and then to which they giggle to in return. Dongwoo makes a face sometimes as well, poking his tongue out and flaring up his nostrils. Donghyuck would scrunch up his nose, preventing himself from laughing but he gives up in the end, leaning down to place a kiss atop their heads. They bathe in their dad’s love and smile up at him with awe in their eyes. Donghyuck feels the warmth again. He feels the warmth that blooms in his chest every time the fact that they’re his own sinks in. Sometimes he just can’t believe he’s managed to raise them this way, it’s overwhelming. The awe and amusement in their eyes, the love, everything. He feels as if he doesn’t deserve them looking up to him, what’s there to look up at him? What’s there to see in him. But then again, his mom’s voice rings in his head. Maybe someday he’ll understand. Maybe he’ll find the answers and he’ll get it, he’ll be at his best for them. Surely.

They make it in time to the cafe with a few minutes to spare. The kids take their fluffy jackets off and keep them in the backroom where Winwin greets them with a pinch on their cheeks. Donghyuck on the other hand, was busy preparing his work place and making sure everything was ready before he starts his shift when the door chimes with a ringing he’s all too familiar with. 

“Welcome to Sunny’s Pastries Cafe,” he greets, not bothering to turn around. Usually it was the cashier, Xiaojun’s job, but ever since he caught a case of tonsillitis Donghyuck has told him to keep his throat healthy and he’ll just do the greeting instead. So ever since then, Donghyuck’s cheery voice has filled the cafe. 

“I’ll have the iced White Chocolate Mocha and a bit of attention from the barista please?” he hears the voice say and he’d be over the top lying if he said he didn’t recognize the voice the moment he heard it. To top that, he hears his kids screaming Mark’s name and the stomping of their little feet as they run from the end kf the cafe to cling on Mark’s legs.

He turns around to eye the kids first before sending a knowing smile up at Mark. The other sends him a sheepish smile, hands coming up to ruffle the kids’ heads, “hey.”

“Hi,” Mark replies, “White choco mocha iced please, regular size.” 

“It’s fine, I’ll take it from here,” Donghyuck tells Xiaojun with a foolish smile on his face. The older complies, giving him room to navigate while he picks up wash cloths to wipe the uncleaned tables. Mark gives him a nod and a small smile before he props his elbows on the counter to watch Donghyuck make his drink. 

“You know if you stare at me for too long I might melt before even finishing your drink,” he ducks his head, pretending that the blush creeping up his cheeks doesn’t exist. He hears Mark laugh and a little rustle of plastic comes from Mark’s side before he hears Dowon’s voice.

“Can we buy cookie?” her small voice asks. 

Donghyuck’s eyes widen comically, setting the cups down on the working area before looking over the counter, ready to scold Dowon for even asking. Mark stops him, waving a hand in front of him and picking up two neatly sealed cookies and placing them on the counter, “it’s just cookies, Hyuck, they’ll be fine.” 

For the nth time, Donghyuck sees himself unable to resist both Mark and his kids. 

When the drink was ready, he serves the drink to where the kids and Mark were, “How many cookies did you get them?”

“One each, mom.” Mark mocks, letting a laugh escape his lips.

“Good,” he takes a seat across from Mark as the kids munch on the cookies almost the size of their faces, “What brings you in for coffee?”

“I was studying for finals, actually. I thought I needed a break so I came over, plus, Frozen 2 is showing.” Mark says casually, giving a side glance towards the kids go see their reactions. 

“Elsa! Appa, Markie’s talking about Elsa!” Dowon cheers, jumping up and down, little hand clutching on her dad’s hand. He widens his eyes, thinking about what he just heard, they haven’t even met up with Mark that much but they’ve already managed to grow a nickname for him, “Can we watch appa?”

“Mark, you’re corrupting my kids’ minds,” he sighs to which Mark only replies with a sheepish smile, “Sorry, sweetie, appa would love to but I have so much to do, baby.” 

Both Dowon and Dongwoo’s shoulders slump, a small pout forming on their lips as they sit quietly. Donghyuck would really love to spend time with them and entertain them but not right now, he needed to study and pass his exams.

“It’s okay, hyung can take you,” Mark smiles, leaning forward to look at them and pinch their cheeks each, “Don’t be sad, we’ll watch Elsa and Anna together.”

“But appa?” Dongwoo asks, eyes wide and slowly sliding towards Donghyuck. If Donghyuck wasn’t in such a stressed state, he would’ve laughed at him.

“Mark, please I’m still saving up for–“

“It’s on me,” he says, “It’s fine, Hyuck, I promise I’ll bring them home to you safe. Consider me a babysitter today, you can study your ass off at home while we’re in the cinema.” 

“I don’t think that’s a–“

“Appa please!” Dongwoo and Dowon both plead, using their puppy eyes and little pouts at Donghyuck, whom of course, is very much weak for his kids. They just know how to make their dad crumble and get what they want, it worries Donghyuck sometimes. He worries how the kids are not only replicas of him physically, but they’re also replicas of him when it comes to everything else. Heck, they even like Mark too, that’s Donghyuck’s job.

“Fine, what time are you buying tickets?” Donghyuck asks with a slight grumble.

“Already have them,” he shrugs, smiling as he brings out three tickets out of his jacket pocket and waves them in the air. Donghyuck dramatically gasps at him in an offended manner, pulling his hand over his mouth, looking scandalized.

“You planned this without putting me into the picture, Mark Lee?”

Mark takes his lower lip between his teeth, preventing himself from squealing because why does Donghyuck have to be so adorable all the time? He gives up in the end and reaches over the table to pinch Donghyuck’s cheek, “I’ll take them, feed them and return them to you tonight.”

“Right now?”

“Yes, right now,” Mark nods, he looks over to the twins, “Coming with Markie?”

They nod in unison with equal enthusiasm as their eyes look up at Mark with such admiration they think they’re Donghyuck. That’s his job, being head over heels is his job. They say their goodbyes and give Donghyuck the noisiest smacking kiss they’ve ever given him before running up front before Mark even calls. Thankfully for the sake of Donghyuck’s heart, Kun makes a move to stop them and at the same time, they stop and look towards Mark, their one way pass to the cinema.

Donghyuck stands from his seat, gettingready to get back to work. He catches Mark’s wrist and gently pulls him close, “Keep an eye on them, ‘kay? Bring them back safe.”

“Yes, trust me. We’ll have a good time and come back home safe,” he says reassuringly. Donghyuck is reassured by then. He doesn’t let the warmth that blooms in his chest waste and thrives in it. It’s the way Mark says ‘come back home’ and acts all sweet around him that he loses his senses, “I care about them too, Hyuck.”

“I know” he sighs in defeat, “please eat dinner after, I’ll be at home.” he says, testing out the waters, taking a feel of what it’s like calling their place a ‘home’ with Mark. 

Mark moves his wrists away from Donghyuck’s hold to hold his hand instead and pull him closer, he leaves a chaste kiss just beside his lips, so close but not exactly enough. Donghyuck couldn’t help the heat rising on his face so he shoves Mark’s shoulder to push him away to which the older just laughs at before taking the kids’ hands in his and leading them out. Donghyuck is left with a flushed face and a racing heartbeat to finish his shift for tonight. 

Later into the night, when Donghyuck was just finishing up the last of his reviewer and wallowing in self-pity, he hears the little pads of footsteps arriving on his front door. Just as expected, Mark and the kids arrive just before ten. He glances once at the clock then looks towards the door, drags his whole weight and feet up to welcome them home. He wipes off the sleepy state of his face and turns it into a bright smile which actually turned to look like a slight grimace, he couldn’t help it, he was tired. The door bell rang twice before he unlocks the door and get bombarded by two kids clinging to him, making him step backward further into the complex.

“Appa, appa, appa!” they kept calling excitedly. His head was starting to hurt again from the high pitched voices calling at him excitedly and telling their stories simultaneously. He guesses they really did have fun with Mark tonight, maybe too much fun too.

“Okay calm down, tell appa in the living room, one at a time. Understand?” he says in a calm voice, almost reminding him of how his father used to talk to him and his siblings when they were younger. They nod in agreement and ran towards the couch to wait. 

Donghyuck takes the opportunity to look at Mark and give him a knowing smile, “What did you feed them?”

Mark smiles sheepishly, hand coming up to scratch his neck, “We ate some glazed and buttered chicken and some kimbap for dinner.”

“Cut it out, did you feed them chocolate or ice cream?” 

“Chocolate shake with ice cream,” Mark says guiltily, avoiding Donghyuck’s eyes. He knows sweets make them hyper but it was too hard to say no when they asked for the drink with their cute eyes and little pout that reminds Mark too much of a certain boy he thinks he’s in love with. “I’m sorry, Hyuck, they were too cute to say no to.”

“I know that, dummy.” he rolls his eyes.

“I’ll put them to bed if they don’t sleep early, promise. I’ll promise to put them to sleep while you go rest.” Mark rambles out, at this point he was just saying everything and anything on his mind to save Donghyuck from staying up too late.

“Is that an indirect request to let you stay the night?” Donghyuck asks, shifting his weight on one leg and holding a hand to his waist. He pulls Mark in when the other shrugs.

“Don’t you have to be up early tomorrow?” 

“My exams are scheduled after lunch so I have enough time,” he says nonchalantly, setting his shoes on the rack to the side of the entrance. Donghyuck lets Mark follow him into the living room where the kids are already waiting for them. Donghyuck squeezes himself beside Dongwoo while Mark sits on the other side of the couch. 

“You can use some of my clothes for the meantime, just that room over there take whatever you want,” he points to the room beside the kids’ door. 

When Mark was gone, the kids started to talk about the movie night and Donghyuck couldn’t help but smile warmly at them. Their smiles were too pure and the way they talked about each scene with so much awe and happiness just makes him feel even warmer. Both Dowon and Dongwoo’s curly hair were all over the place, but it makes them look even more adorable, he kisses their cheeks mid-talk.

“Appa, Mark hyung stay?” Dongwoo suddenly asks.

“Yes, baby, he’s gonna stay the night.” he smiles, wondering why he asks so suddenly.

“No, no appa, stay here?” he pushes further. Donghyuck gives him a confused look asking him to talk further, “Mark hyung stay with us? together?”

“You mean, stay with us for good?” he asks, feeling the heat on his cheeks rise.

“I want Mark hyung, appa” he pouts, pulling onto his father’s pajamas. Dowon joins in too after, “Me too, appa.”

Although the thought of Mark moving in with them and wanting them as a trio is still ridiculous and scares the shit out of Donghyuck, he knows it’s something the kids still hope for. Something he hopes for. He hopes Mark knows just how much the kids have grown to love him and understand that just leaving them be would cause so much of a heartbreak their little hearts can’t take. Not even for Donghyuck. They’ve been a trio for so long and it’s just about time they start to look for another person to fill in a gap Donghyuck tries so hard to fill. Their home might be small and confined in their own little world but there’s always a room for four.

“I want him to stay too, of course.” he smiles, “Mark hyung will stay, we just haven’t formally talked about it. Maybe if you guys sleep early and be good babies, he will?” he pretends to think and rub his chin, humming.

“Yes appa, good night!” 

Donghyuck couldn’t help the loud laugh that escapes his lips when their auras changed into a determined look and they quickly got up from the sofa to run into their rooms to change and sleep the night through. It’s even funnier that they’ll do anything to keep Mark. It’s adorable yet scary in a way. Donghyuck honestly doesn’t know how Mark thinks of the situation and if he’s really ready to stay. He knows they’ve talked about this before and Mark is so willingly ready to stay but they needed to talk further into it. It’s a big step and Donghyuck is willing to take it with Mark, if Mark is just as ready as he is. He was too deep in thought that he failed to notice Mark closing the door to his kids’ bedroom, already walking back towards the couch clad in his sweatpants and shirt. 

“You’re thinking too deep,” he softly says, gently tucking some of Donghyuck’s hair behind his ear, “What is it?” 

“Just me... and you...” he takes a deep breath, “the twins.” 

Mark furrows his eyebrows, shifting his weight on his hands to lean forward and peer through his hair to look at Donghyuck in the eyes. The other was too embarrassed to even look at him and managed to keep his eyes trained on the floor. 

“Hyuck, we already talked about this, didn’t we?” the older whispers, Donghyuck couldn’t tell if it was concern or hurt in his voice but it’s there somewhere, it might be both. 

“I know, it’s just that– what if it doesn’t work out?” Mark wants to object but the younger cuts him off, “I know you want to stay, you’ve clearly told me. But what if you’re really not ready yet? The kids like you so much now and they want you with us all the time and I’m afraid one day you’ll just realize you have so much in you and you want to live your life and you... leave... It’ll hurt them so much, I don’t want to see them upset because... because I can’t bring you back...” 

Donghyuck’s gaze is all over the place when he lifts his head up, he doesn’t realize just how much tears have been streaming down his cheeks, how much his voice cracked with so much sadness and the tumbling of his words because it was too hard to speak straight whilst sobbing. He bites his lip hard to stop the tears from falling but it doesn’t work. His heart aches and his lungs are crying out for air. 

“I just want them to be happy, I just want this family happy. It’s the first time I saw the kids consistently ask me to make someone stay. They never wanted someone so bad, Mark, you don’t understand how much that scares me.” he takes another deep breath in between tears, “Dongwoo calls for you in his sleep, Dowon wants you to be there when she wakes up. They’ve never done that to anyone else. I always try to give them what they want, but right now I don’t know if I can on the long run. I don’t want them to hate me because I’m not enough to make you stay.”

“This is embarrassing but if you’re willing to stay, then please stay for good. If you don’t, if one day you realize you don’t want me anymore... please, Mark, please at least keep in touch with them. That’s all I ask for.” 

Donghyuck shakes his head and closes his eyes, letting the tears stream freely as he gasps to catch for air that his lungs so badly ask for. It’s probably midnight and it’s not a good idea to stay up late crying when he has his exams tomorrow morning but his emotions are overwhelming and he needs to get it off his chest or else he’ll break even further. 

“Donghyuck, baby please, breathe.” Mark whispers soothingly. He shifts forward to rub circles on the younger’s back, “deep breaths, Hyuck, deep breaths.” 

He takes a moment to let Donghyuck calm down and help him get through the sudden breakdown. He waits until his breathing was back to normal and the tears streaming down his face weren’t waterfalls anymore, he pulls Donghyuck closer so that he was leaning his head on the older’s chest, his warm tears soaking the shirt Mark just changed into. He pushes the younger closer, wrapping his arms around his shoulders. Donghyuck accepts the comfort and encircles his arms around Mark’s torso, gripping on his shirt tightly as if loosening it would make Mark disappear. 

“Hyuck, I love you,” Mark mumbles atop his head, he does this before giving Donghyuck’s head a lengthy kiss in attempt to calm his nerves, “and I hope you know that I mean it. For the longest time, I mean it. When I say I love you, I mean the twins as well. It’s hard to believe I know, it’ll take time for you to trust me, but I mean it, Hyuck. I want to be with you more than anyone. If it means I’ll have to work extra hard to help with the rent and the bills and their education then I will. I’m willing to do all of it, Hyuck.” 

Donghyuck feels like he’s lost every ounce of water he has in his body because his head hurts now, he can already feel the tears on his cheeks dry up, and his loud sobs were just little sniffing noises now. Mark continues to rub his back while hugging him close and he can’t really let go now, it was all the comfort he needed. Mark may be good at talking, he might not know how hard it is to raise two kids, he might now be ready but one thing’s for sure now is that he’s ready to learn. He wants to learn and be there. Donghyuck may not know for how long Mark can stay, but he knows he’ll be here for quite some time. He’ll learn to trust him, he’ll learn to love him better. 

“You don’t know what you’re getting yourself into,” he mumbles, muffled by the fabric of Mark’s shirt. 

“Trust me, I know and I want it,” he answers firmly, hands stopping to wrap both arms around Donghyuck to give him a bone crushing hug before pulling away arms length and catching the younger’s eyes, “I want you.”

The crying was too much of an exhaustion that Donghyuck doesn’t even pay attention to the blush rising up his cheeks, the red on his face and his ears and the fluster he feels when Mark said the three words with so much confirmation and determination. 

“I love you,” Donghyuck blurts out, eyes dazed and droopy.

“I love you more, Hyuck” Mark says, pushing back the younger’s hair and squishing his cheeks, to which he complains with an, “I’m not a child, Mark.” 

“I know,” he chuckles, “You need to sleep though, you have your exams.”

“Fuck,” he groans, hands automatically tugging on his hair that Mark just happened to finish fixing, “Fuck it, fuck, I think I forgot everything I’m gonna shit myself Mark what the fuck.” 

Mark shakes his head and feels the stress radiating out of the younger boy in front of him, it’s disappointing he always thinks he’ll do bad when he’s worked so hard. He stands up and picks Donghyuck up in his arms without warning, earning a little scream out of the small boy in his arms. Donghyuck was tall with endless legs but somehow, he always felt smaller in Mark’s hold, always the baby, a baby with babies actually. Donghyuck stares at him wide eyed and amused before turning it into a frown when he notices that Mark has noticed him looking. He plops into bed, rolling on his side before sitting back up to look at Mark whose figure was retreating back into the living room. 

“Where are you going?” 

“Sleeping?” he states as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world.

“Yeah, but where? The couch?”

“Where else would I sleep?” 

Donghyuck gives him a dumb look and stares at him for a good minute before throwing a pillow at his face, “Beside me, you idiot.” 

Mark blinks. Once. Twice. Thrice. He picks up the pillow the younger just threw and walks his way back towards the bed. Donghyuck felt another headache coming because Mark was moving too slow, so he personally pulls the other’s wrists and pushes him down the bed in no time. Donghyuck wraps Mark’s arms around himself and he leans his head on the other’s chest, breathing contently. 

“Good night, Mark Lee.” 

“You too, sunshine.” 

**Author's Note:**

> kudos and comments are appreciated!!!<3333


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